1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the art of fletching arrows, i.e., the attaching of an arrow to the shaft of feathers or pre-molded imitation feathers either of which are often referred to as flights. In particular, the invention relates to a tool which permits the rapid and precise application of several flights to an arrow shaft at one time.
2. Prior Art
The most closely related, known prior art is set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 4,653,738 issued Mar. 31, 1987 to the inventor herein. The fletching tool described in that patent provided a spool with a bore to receive the shaft of an arrow. Coupled to the spool were a multiplicity of fletching guides each having provision for accepting a pre-molded flight. The fletching guides were splayed outward away from the shaft while the pre-molded flights were inserted therein. The guides were then moved so as to encompass the shaft in a manner which would permit adhesive, previously affixed to the flights, to adhere the flights to the shaft. A cap or collar was drawn down over the distal ends of the fletching guides to retain them in position for a sufficient time to complete the bond between arrow shaft and flight.
While the inventor's prior art fletching tool represented a significant advance over the then state of the art, it is an object of the present invention to advance the state of the fletching art even further.